Wheeler County sheriff, deputies to leave office

PENDLETON, Ore. (AP) – Wheeler County will be without law enforcement officers after a sheriff and his deputies announced their departures.

The East Oregonian reports Wheeler County Sheriff Chris Humphreys notified county officials last month of his plans to leave, giving officials up to six month to find a replacement.

Humphreys, who was elected in 2013, says the department’s three full-time deputies are also leaving and the one part-time deputy is resigning. He says the deputies were recruited by larger law enforcement agencies.

Humphreys says he’s exhausted from the growing workload placed on the office.

Commissioner Rob Ordway says there is not a plan to replace the sheriff and he does not know how law enforcement services will be provided. The county of 1,500 people does not contain any other police departments.

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Information from: East Oregonian, http://www.eastoregonian.com